Gizmodo
Encyclopedia
Gizmodo is a technology weblog about consumer electronics
. It is part of the Gawker Media
network run by Nick Denton
and is known for its up-to-date coverage of the technology industry, along with topics as broad as design; architecture; space and science.
, but he was recruited by Weblogs, Inc.
to launch their similar technology blog Engadget
. By mid-2004, Gizmodo and Gawker together were bringing in revenue of approximately $6,500 per month.
In 2005, VNU and Gawker Media formed an alliance to republish Gizmodo across Europe
, with VNU translating the content into French
, German
, Dutch
, Spanish
, Italian
and Portuguese
, and adding local European-interest material.
In April 2007, Allure Media launched Gizmodo Australia, under license from Gawker Media and incorporating additional Australian content.
In November 2007, the Dutch magazine license was taken over by HUB Uitgevers
.
In September 2008, Gizmodo Brazil was launched with Portuguese content.
In September 2011, Gizmodo UK was launched to cover British news.
In February 2011, Gizmodo had a major redesign met with a strong dislike by current commentators of the site.
, journalists at the (simultaneous) Macworld
debated whether Gizmodo or Engadget
had the better live coverage of Steve Jobs' 2007 keynote.
remotes. This resulted in the videographer, Richard Blakeley, being barred from CES 2008, and any future CES events.
smartphone by Apple, Inc.. The site purchased the device for USD $5000 from Brian J. Hogan, who found it unattended at a bar in Redwood City, CA a month earlier. An acquaintance of Hogan, Sage Robert, a UC Berkeley student, allegedly helped him sell the phone, after failing to track down the owner. With Apple confirming its provenance, bloggers such as John Gruber
and Ken Sweet speculated that this transaction may have violated the California Penal Code
.
On 26 April, after Gizmodo returned the iPhone to Apple, upon Apple's request, the police group, California Rapid Enforcement Allied Computer Team, executed a search warrant on editor Jason Chen's home and seized computers, hard drives, servers, cameras, notes, and a file of business cards, under direction from San Mateo County’s chief deputy district attorney, Stephen Wagstaffe. Since then, Gizmodo and the prosecution have agreed that a special master
will review the contents of the items seized and determine if they contain any relevant information.. Gizmodo has since been barred from all Apple-hosted events and product launches.
Consumer electronics
Consumer electronics are electronic equipment intended for everyday use, most often in entertainment, communications and office productivity. Radio broadcasting in the early 20th century brought the first major consumer product, the broadcast receiver...
. It is part of the Gawker Media
Gawker Media
Gawker Media is an American online media company and blog network, founded and owned by Nick Denton based in New York City. It is considered to be one of the most visible and successful blog-oriented media companies. , it is the parent company for 11 different weblogs: Gawker.com, Fleshbot,...
network run by Nick Denton
Nick Denton
Nick Denton, born August 24, 1966, is a British journalist and internet entrepreneur, the founder and proprietor of the blog collective Gawker Media, and the managing editor of the New York-based Gawker.com...
and is known for its up-to-date coverage of the technology industry, along with topics as broad as design; architecture; space and science.
Writers
| Blogger | Position |
|---|---|
| Joe Brown | Editor in Chief |
| Matt Buchanan | Deputy Editor |
| Brian Barrett | Senior Editor |
| Jesus Diaz | Senior Contributing Editor |
| Mat Honan Roberto Baldwin |
Reporters |
| Kelly Hodgkins Kristen Philipkoski |
Contributing Editors |
| Jack Loftus Kwame Opam |
Contributing Editors, Weekends |
| Brent Rose Andrew Tarantola Sam Biddle Adrian Covert Casey Chan |
Junior Reporters |
| Kyle Wagner Mario Aguilar |
Editorial Assistants |
| John Herrman Mark Wilson |
Contributors |
| Woody Allen Jang | Contributing Video Editor |
| Natt Garun Mike Kennelly |
Interns |
History
The blog, launched in 2002, was originally edited by Peter RojasPeter Rojas
Peter Rojas is the co-founder of technology blogs Gizmodo and Engadget, as well as the video gaming blog Joystiq . A 2006 article in New York magazine described him as "the best-compensated blogger in history".-Education:...
, but he was recruited by Weblogs, Inc.
Weblogs, Inc.
Weblogs, Inc. is a blog network of about 90 blogs, covering a variety of subjects, from computers and gaming . Roughly half of these blogs are regularly updated and maintained. Weblogs, Inc. was founded in September 2003.-History:...
to launch their similar technology blog Engadget
Engadget
Engadget is a multilingual technology blog network with daily coverage of gadgets and consumer electronics. Though on appearance Engadget functions much like a blog and may be defined as such, much of its editorial content takes the form of an online magazine...
. By mid-2004, Gizmodo and Gawker together were bringing in revenue of approximately $6,500 per month.
In 2005, VNU and Gawker Media formed an alliance to republish Gizmodo across Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
, with VNU translating the content into French
French language
French is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...
, German
German language
German is a West Germanic language, related to and classified alongside English and Dutch. With an estimated 90 – 98 million native speakers, German is one of the world's major languages and is the most widely-spoken first language in the European Union....
, Dutch
Dutch language
Dutch is a West Germanic language and the native language of the majority of the population of the Netherlands, Belgium, and Suriname, the three member states of the Dutch Language Union. Most speakers live in the European Union, where it is a first language for about 23 million and a second...
, Spanish
Spanish language
Spanish , also known as Castilian , is a Romance language in the Ibero-Romance group that evolved from several languages and dialects in central-northern Iberia around the 9th century and gradually spread with the expansion of the Kingdom of Castile into central and southern Iberia during the...
, Italian
Italian language
Italian is a Romance language spoken mainly in Europe: Italy, Switzerland, San Marino, Vatican City, by minorities in Malta, Monaco, Croatia, Slovenia, France, Libya, Eritrea, and Somalia, and by immigrant communities in the Americas and Australia...
and Portuguese
Portuguese language
Portuguese is a Romance language that arose in the medieval Kingdom of Galicia, nowadays Galicia and Northern Portugal. The southern part of the Kingdom of Galicia became independent as the County of Portugal in 1095...
, and adding local European-interest material.
In April 2007, Allure Media launched Gizmodo Australia, under license from Gawker Media and incorporating additional Australian content.
In November 2007, the Dutch magazine license was taken over by HUB Uitgevers
HUB Uitgevers
HUB Uitgevers is a Netherlands-based magazine publisher. HUB Uitgevers was founded in 1993 and has grown to be one of the leading IT publishers, with over 15 consumer titles, and a number of business-to-business magazines...
.
In September 2008, Gizmodo Brazil was launched with Portuguese content.
In September 2011, Gizmodo UK was launched to cover British news.
In February 2011, Gizmodo had a major redesign met with a strong dislike by current commentators of the site.
Coverage
A Gizmodo blogger captured the first photos from the floor of CES 2007, and according to ReutersReuters
Reuters is a news agency headquartered in New York City. Until 2008 the Reuters news agency formed part of a British independent company, Reuters Group plc, which was also a provider of financial market data...
, journalists at the (simultaneous) Macworld
Macworld
Macworld is a web site and monthly computer magazine dedicated to Apple Macintosh products. It is published by Mac Publishing, which is headquartered in San Francisco, California...
debated whether Gizmodo or Engadget
Engadget
Engadget is a multilingual technology blog network with daily coverage of gadgets and consumer electronics. Though on appearance Engadget functions much like a blog and may be defined as such, much of its editorial content takes the form of an online magazine...
had the better live coverage of Steve Jobs' 2007 keynote.
Controversy
A videographer for Gawker Media, Gizmodo's publisher, disrupted several presentations held at CES 2008 by secretly turning off flatscreen TVs using TV-B-GoneTV-B-Gone
TV-B-Gone is a type of simple universal remote control device for turning off a large majority of the current available brands of television sets. It was created to allow people in a public place to turn off nearby television sets. Its inventor has referred to it as "an environmental management...
remotes. This resulted in the videographer, Richard Blakeley, being barred from CES 2008, and any future CES events.
iPhone 4 Prototype
In April 2010, Gizmodo came into possession of what was later known to be a prototype of the iPhone 4IPhone 4
The iPhone 4 is a touchscreen slate smartphone developed by Apple Inc. It is the fourth generation iPhone, and successor to the iPhone 3GS. It is particularly marketed for video calling , consumption of media such as books and periodicals, movies, music, and games, and for general web and e-mail...
smartphone by Apple, Inc.. The site purchased the device for USD $5000 from Brian J. Hogan, who found it unattended at a bar in Redwood City, CA a month earlier. An acquaintance of Hogan, Sage Robert, a UC Berkeley student, allegedly helped him sell the phone, after failing to track down the owner. With Apple confirming its provenance, bloggers such as John Gruber
John Gruber
John Gruber is a writer from the greater Philadelphia, Pennsylvania area of the USA. Gruber received his Bachelor of Science in computer science from Drexel University. He worked for Bare Bones Software from 2000 to 2002 and Joyent from 2005 to 2006...
and Ken Sweet speculated that this transaction may have violated the California Penal Code
California Penal Code
The Penal Code of California forms the basis for the application of criminal law in the American state of California. It was originally enacted in 1872 as one of the original four California Codes, and has been substantially amended and revised since then....
.
On 26 April, after Gizmodo returned the iPhone to Apple, upon Apple's request, the police group, California Rapid Enforcement Allied Computer Team, executed a search warrant on editor Jason Chen's home and seized computers, hard drives, servers, cameras, notes, and a file of business cards, under direction from San Mateo County’s chief deputy district attorney, Stephen Wagstaffe. Since then, Gizmodo and the prosecution have agreed that a special master
Special master
In law, a special master is an authority appointed by a judge to make sure that judicial orders are actually followed.In England, at common law, there were "Masters in Chancery," who acted in aid of the Equity Courts. There were also "Masters in Lunacy," who conducted inquiries of the same nature...
will review the contents of the items seized and determine if they contain any relevant information.. Gizmodo has since been barred from all Apple-hosted events and product launches.
See also
- WiredWired (magazine)Wired is a full-color monthly American magazine and on-line periodical, published since January 1993, that reports on how new and developing technology affects culture, the economy, and politics...
- Lifehacker
- TechCrunchTechCrunchTechCrunch is a web publication that offers technology news and analysis, as well as profiling of startup companies, products, and websites. It was founded by Michael Arrington in 2005, and was first published on June 11, 2005....
- Gawker MediaGawker MediaGawker Media is an American online media company and blog network, founded and owned by Nick Denton based in New York City. It is considered to be one of the most visible and successful blog-oriented media companies. , it is the parent company for 11 different weblogs: Gawker.com, Fleshbot,...
- EngadgetEngadgetEngadget is a multilingual technology blog network with daily coverage of gadgets and consumer electronics. Though on appearance Engadget functions much like a blog and may be defined as such, much of its editorial content takes the form of an online magazine...